


The Winter Soldier Ice Cream Shoppe

by LightsOut



Series: Avenger Row Businesses [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern: No Powers, Fluff, Friendship, Getting Together, Kissing, Not Canon Compliant, Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-26
Updated: 2015-02-26
Packaged: 2018-03-15 08:32:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3440513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LightsOut/pseuds/LightsOut
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bucky is the owner of ‘The Winter Soldier Ice Cream Shoppe’ and when he meets his new shop neighbour Steve Rogers, owner of ‘Sarah’s Arts’ things begin to heat up between them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Winter Soldier Ice Cream Shoppe

_The Winter Soldier Ice Cream Shoppe_ was in the middle of Avenger Row and owned by James “Bucky” Barnes. On his left was _Romanov Boutique_ and on his right was _Coulson Accounting_. Across the street was _Barton’s Archery School_ and a few buildings down from that was _Stark Garage_. There was also _Falcon Therapy_ owned by Sam Wilson which was a coffee shop and a therapist office to any regulars who knew the owner. The antique store _Asgard_ was owned by two brothers, Thor and Loki, and it was a mystery to everyone how they managed to make any money because they were always fighting. Then there was _Fury’s Bar_ where Bucky tended to spend his Saturday nights unsuccessfully avoiding the karaoke.

Bucky had owned _The Winter Soldier Ice Cream Shoppe_ for five years and in all of his time on the street one building had always been empty. That all changed one morning in July. Bucky was still half asleep so before he opened his own store he walked into _Falcon Therapy_. He was so exhausted thanks to his stubborn insomnia that it took him a few moments to realise most of the shop owners from the street had their noses pressed up against the windows. Bucky looked at Sam who was standing behind the counter and he started making Bucky’s drink before he could ask for it.

Sam shrugged and explained, “New shop.”

Bucky frowned, “Who?”

Sam shrugged, “Nobody knows. Apparently he bought the building quietly and he’s moving in today.”

Bucky grunted and clutched his coffee close when Sam handed it to him, “What’s he opening?”

Sam usually knew all of the gossip so it was strange that he shrugged, “I’m sure that we’ll find out soon.”

Bucky sipped his coffee and watched Natasha Romanov, owner of _Romanov Boutique_ , approach them out of the corner of his eye. Sam had his back turned so he jumped when she spoke and it was never not funny, “I had a new shipment.”

Bucky fought back his excited grin and kept his expression neutral, “Anything interesting?”

Natasha smirked, “I’ll save you some pieces.”

Bucky smiled gratefully, “Thank you.”

Clint Barton walked up to them and threw an arm around Natasha’s shoulders. He was the only one who could get away with it without her killing him. The rumours about her being an ex-KGB assassin weren’t completely unbelievable. Clint grinned widely at them all, “According to my sources the new guy is an artist and he’s opening his own independent art store.”

Bucky rolled his eyes, “We all know that you’re ‘source’ is Kate.”

Clint shrugged, “My point still stands.”

Sam handed Bucky another coffee, “I’m sure that we’ll all meet him eventually.”

Bucky nodded, “Thanks Sam. I’ve got to go open up.”

Sam gently kicked out the rest of the shop owners who needed to open their stores. Bucky stepped inside his own store and switched on the lights. He set up efficiently and quickly like he always did and he opened the doors. It was rare that anyone actually wanted ice cream at eight o’clock in the morning but it beat sitting around in his apartment and moping until mid-day. That was why he’d started a breakfast menu.

He made the mix for waffles and a batch of pancakes. He had a few customers order off the menu and one pretty brunette woman who ordered two batches of waffles to go. The day went swiftly and after lunch Bucky’s employee Gabe Jones walked in to take over. Bucky grabbed what was left of the waffles and walked into _Romanov Boutique_.

Maria Hill was sat behind the counter. She pointed towards the door behind her, “She’s in there.”

Bucky nodded and passed her a waffle. Behind the door there was a storage room/ break area and Natasha was sorting through boxes. Without looking at him she said, “The black box.”

Bucky picked up the box and flopped down onto the worn sofa. He looked at the leather jacket and black leather pants. He pulled a face, “They look tight.”

Natasha snorted, “You prefer them that way.”

Bucky shrugged because she wasn’t wrong, “Waffle?”

They ate together until Clint stormed into the room with wide eyes and a manic grin, “Oh my god! The new guy has finally shown up!” Neither Bucky nor Natasha obviously showed the appropriate amount of enthusiasm because Clint grabbed both of their arms. He started pulling them up and towards the door, “Come on!”

Bucky was surprised that Clint could be so suicidal but since that he was in a good mood he decided that he wasn’t going to snap Clint’s neck. Natasha had reached the same decision because they both stayed quiet and followed Clint so that they could peer out from the windows.

Clint gestured wildly, “There he is.”

Bucky swallowed hard and Natasha made a strangled noise that meant that she was also impressed. The man had broad shoulders, golden blonde hair and a waist that would look good with Bucky’s legs wrapped around it. Natasha leaned closer to the glass, “He’s an artist?”

Clint was still grinning, “Yeah. I wonder if he needs a nude model.” Natasha hit him and he laughed, “We could get a painting of us together for our anniversary.”

Bucky rolled his eyes as they started bickering. Sometimes he still couldn’t believe that they were married even though he’d acted as best man at their wedding. The bickering soon dissolved into making out and Bucky cleared his throat, “Well, that’s my cue to leave.”

They ignored him like they usually did and he waved to Maria on his way out. He didn’t intentionally walk across the street to check out the new shop owner but, as he walked past the blonde stumbled and Bucky reached out to catch the falling box without thinking about it. The new shop owner smiled, “Thanks, man.”

Bucky passed him the box, “No problem. You should probably know that most of the people around here are watching you from their windows.” Bucky quickly backtracked, “I just meant that everyone’s curious, I didn’t mean it in a creepy way, that is… oh crap. This is why I don’t talk to people.”

Steve laughed but the sound wasn’t condescending, “Thanks for letting me know. Peggy said that it was a close knit community around here.”

Bucky frowned slightly, “Peggy?”

The brunette who’d bought waffles from Bucky’s shop that morning approached them, “Are you talking about me?”

Steve smiled warmly at her, “Yeah, he just saved about five hundred dollars of paint brushes from spilling onto the pavement.”

Bucky’s eyes widened, “Five hundred dollars? Jeez, that’s a lot for some brushes.” Bucky ran his good hand through his hair, “Sorry, like I said, I shouldn’t be allowed to talk to people. I’m Bucky Barnes, I own _The Winter Soldier Ice Cream Shoppe_.”

They shook hands, “I’m Steve Rogers.”

Peggy interrupted, “Captain Steve Rogers.”

Steve rolled his eyes, “Please don’t do that.”

Peggy snorted, “Yes, Captain.”

She walked away and carried on unloading the truck. Steve was blushing, “Sorry about that. Peggy and I served together and she seems to tell everyone.”

Bucky shook his head, “Don’t worry about it. You’re not the only Vet on the street.” Bucky saluted him, “Sergeant James “Bucky” Barnes at your service. If you go to _Falcon Therapy_ you’ll meet Sam Wilson. He was a para-rescueman. He’s a great guy and he makes the best coffee.”

Steve nodded, “I’ll keep it in minds, thanks.”

Bucky nodded towards the truck, “Would you like a hand?”

“Oh, I’m sure that you have better things to do.”

Bucky snorted and shook his head, “Television and cold pizza don’t count as ‘better things to do’. Just don’t let me carry anything too valuable and I’m happy to help.”

Bucky worked with Steve and Peggy for the afternoon. Bucky learned that Steve and Peggy weren’t together although they gave that sort of impression at first. He also learned that Peggy was organised and determined. She reminded him of Pepper who ran _Stark Garage_ even though she wasn’t the owner. He also learned that Steve was opening his own store because he was finally fulfilling his mother’s dream. His mother had died just after he’d enlisted in the army. It was obviously bittersweet but by the time they locked up Steve looked happy. They said goodbye to Peggy and walked across to Sam’s for a cup of coffee.

Bucky immediately spotted Clint and Natasha conspiring in the corner. Tony Stark was asleep in a shallow pool of coffee near the window which wasn’t a surprise to anybody who knew him. There was no-one else around that Bucky knew apart from Sam who was grinning at him.

Sam drawled, “Hey Bucky. Who’s your friend?”

Bucky rolled his eyes, “Sam, this is Steve. Steve, this is Sam.”

They shook hands and Steve broke out his friendly-don’t-mind-me smile, “It’s nice to meet you.”

Sam nodded, “Likewise, what can I get you?”

Bucky paid despite Steve’s protests. Bucky almost grabbed a table far, far away from his friends but then he realised how that would look to the people who knew him. He said to Steve, “I’ll introduce you to some of the other owners from the street.”

He introduced Steve to Clint and Natasha and then he left them for a moment while he walked over to Tony and waked him as gently as he could. Tony didn’t look very sure about where he was at first and then he sighed, “Asleep?”

Bucky nodded, “Yeah, Pepper’s going to kill you if you keep that up.”

Tony scowled, “I’m fine.”

Bucky rolled his eyes, “Sure. Go see Bruce or something.”

Tony narrowed his eyes, “Why would I go and see Bruce? It’s not like he’s ever done anything for me.”

Bucky sighed and sat down next to Tony, “You can’t fool me Stark. You two have been pining for each other ever since you split which was a stupid thing to do in the first place.”

Tony sputtered indignant, “He left…”

Bucky interrupted in a low, calm voice, “You fought and he wanted to give you some space. You never did tell me what you were fighting about.”

Tony huffed unhappily and admitted, “We were fighting about Pepper.”

That was slightly surprising, “I thought that you and Pepper were over.”

“We are. We definitely are, but Bruce doesn’t seem to get that.”

Bucky pulled Stark’s phone out of his rumpled shirt pocket, “Call him.”

“It’s been two months. I can’t just call him.”

Bucky grabbed Tony’s hand and put the phone into it, “Two months is long enough. Call him before you end up killing yourself over this.”

While Bucky watched him Tony dialled Bruce’s number. Tony looked angry but when someone picked up on the other end his eyes went soft and he just looked tired, “Bruce, hey… I’m okay. How’re you? Good, that’s… good.” He paused and Bucky glared at him until Tony started speaking again, “I’m sorry. I want you to come home, baby. I… I love you.”

Bucky relaxed and stayed with Tony long after he’d hung up the phone. Tony pretended he wasn’t crying and Bucky pretended that he couldn’t see it. Sam came over eventually with another coffee for Bucky and he didn’t hover. Eventually Tony was finished and he patted Bucky on the back, “Thanks Robocop.”

Bucky snorted at the nickname and stayed where he was while Tony stood up, “Get some sleep Iron Man and tell Bruce to get his ass down to my shop. I’ve got new flavours we need to make.”

Tony grinned, “Sure thing. See you later. Bye guys.”

Everyone called out to say goodbye in response and Bucky waited until Tony was out of the door before he went to join Natasha, Clint and Steve. Bucky stretched dramatically before he flopped down into the chair that was free and he groaned, “Urgh, feelings.”

Natasha’s mouth curved up at the corners and Clint laughed loudly. Steve was looking at Bucky with an expression that he couldn’t quite identify. Clint smirked, “You’re such a good citizen.”

Bucky glared but the expression didn’t have any heat. He was just glad that he wouldn’t have Pepper storming into his shop to complain about Tony’s moping for a while. Tony was a good man with one hell of an intellect but he made some odd decisions about his personal life. Bucky was also looking forward to seeing Bruce again. Bruce Banner was a chemist and Bucky hadn’t seen him emerge from _Banner Pharmacy_ since his fight with Tony. Steve was right when he’d said that they had a close knit community.

Bucky asked Steve, “Which horrible stories have they been telling you?”

Steve shrugged, “Nothing too bad.”

Clint started giggling which was never a good sign and Natasha looked smug. Bucky narrowed his eyes at them, “I hate you both.”

Clint laughed harder, “You wish. Anyway, we were just telling Steve that he should come to dinner on Friday.”

Friday night dinner was a tradition. Bucky brought ice cream, Clint cooked and Natasha provided vodka and other alcohol. They’d never invited somebody else before but Bucky wasn’t going to point it out when Steve was sat right next to him. Instead he nodded, “Yeah that sounds like a good idea. You’re probably better off getting used to the strange people around here sooner rather than later. Natasha, is the exception of course.”

Clint protested, “Hey, we’re not weird.”

Bucky smirked, “Sure.”

Clint flipped him off, “Whatever Lefty.”

“That was weak.”

Clint turned to Natasha for support, but she just shrugged, “Bucky’s right.”

Clint started complaining about it wasn’t fair for them to gang up on him and that his joke was good. Steve asked gently, “Lefty?”

Bucky remembered with a jolt that Steve had no idea. He didn’t particularly relish telling the story but he’d asked so Bucky rolled up the sleeve of his left arm to reveal the metal, “It’s an advanced prosthetic. I lost my left arm during my first and only tour in Iraq.”

Natasha sounded proud and fierce when she said, “He saved five lives before he passed out from blood loss. He’s a hero.”

Bucky shook his head, “I was a lucky idiot.”

Natasha was frowning but he was more interested in the understanding way that Steve was looking at him. He could tell by the shadows in Steve’s eyes that Bucky wasn’t the only one who’d come back with something missing but, then again, Bucky didn’t know of a single soldier who came home whole. They both nodded slightly at each other and Bucky changed the subject.

 

~ & ~

 

Three days later Bucky was sitting at one of the tables by the counter in his shop when Peggy walked in. Gabe was working behind the counter. When Gabe saw her Bucky could practically see the hearts in his eyes. Bucky kept his laughter quiet because he knew that whatever happened next would be hilarious.

Peggy walked up to the counter, “Hi, I’d like a vanilla fudge sundae please.”

Gabe nodded enthusiastically and tripped over his own feet when he turned around. Bucky couldn’t stifle his laughter and Gabe glared at him while he sorted out Peggy’s order. Peggy walked up to Bucky once she’d paid and sat at his table. He was still sniggering and Gabe had gone into the back to lick his wounds.

Peggy frowned, “If you hurt Steve they’ll never find the body.”

Bucky’s laughter tapered off slowly. He answered her seriously, “That’s good to know. If you hurt Gabe they’ll find your body in my freezer.”

They both nodded as they’d come to an agreement. Peggy stayed where she was, “Steve told me that you and your friends invited him to dinner.”

They talked for a while, mostly about Steve, and when Peggy left Bucky was pleased to see that she handed Gabe a napkin with her number written on it. Gabe looked like he was going to swoon so Bucky teased him mercilessly until his shift ended. It was Friday so Bucky headed straight to Clint and Natasha’s apartment once he’d locked up his shop. Thanks to Clint’s Olympic history and Natasha’s mysterious past they lived in a place much nicer than anything Bucky could afford. He put the ice cream in the freezer as soon as he arrived and Clint put him straight to work in helping to cook. Natasha sat at the kitchen table and sipped from a large glass of red wine until there was a knock at the door.

She answered it and Steve followed her back with a sheepish expression, “I’m not too late am I?”

Bucky was too busy staring at Steve in his dark blue shirt to answer. Thankfully Natasha answered Steve and Clint elbowed Bucky rudely in the ribs. Clint was laughing under his breath as he chopped vegetables. It didn’t take long for Natasha to convince Steve that he could have one glass of wine and then soft drinks for the rest of the night if he wasn’t interested in drinking. The alcohol put a lovely flush of red in Steve’s cheeks and Clint kept nudging Bucky whenever he stared for too long.

Dinner didn’t take very long and they were soon sitting down at the table. Considering Clint’s goofball attitude most of the time he was very serious about his cooking and he was capable of an adult conversation. Steve had another glass of wine after being cajoled by Natasha and Bucky teased him cautiously about it. Steve took the teasing in his stride and Bucky was enjoying himself although he wasn’t drinking.

They asked Steve about his plans for his shop and they all agreed that _Sarah’s Arts_ was a beautiful name for a store. Steve had named the place after his mother and even Natasha thought that it was a sweet gesture. After they’d eaten and washed up Bucky grabbed the ice cream. They sat in the living room while they watched television and talked. Steve complimented the ice cream and Bucky grinned.

Natasha giggled, feeling happy and loose from the wine. It was amusing because she could drink a whole bottle of vodka and she would be in complete control. She told Bucky, “You should make apple pie ice cream.”

Bucky was very interested in her reasoning, “Why is that, Nat?”

She waved vaguely in Steve’s direction, “Because he’s all-American, apple pie and that’s how you woo people.”

Clint was giggling with his wife and Bucky blushed, “I think that maybe it’s time to go to bed before you say anything that you regret Nat.”

Clint walked Steve and Bucky to the door. He shook hands with Steve and said, “Thanks for coming tonight Steve. This was fun.”

Steve nodded in agreement, “Thank you for inviting me.”

Bucky passed Clint what was left of the amaretto ice cream, “Make sure that Nat drinks some water before you go to bed.”

Clint snorted, “She’ll do whatever she wants to, but I’ll give it a go. See you later Barnes.”

Steve and Bucky walked down the stairs together in comfortable silence. When they were stood outside Steve started chuckling. Bucky was curious and asked, “What’s so funny?”

Steve grinned, “I’m not really a fan of apple pie.”

Bucky started laughing as well, “It’s a good sign though. Natasha must really like you if she’s that relaxed around you.”

Steve smiled wryly, “It seems that everyone has their baggage on Avenger Row.”

Bucky nodded, “Yeah, but I think that it makes us the best kind of people when we don’t let it drag us down. It took me a long time to see it that way.”

They started walking in the same direction down the street. Steve asked, “Why an ice cream shop?”

Bucky smiled, “I’m from Brooklyn and we never had a lot of money when I was a kid. Every year my sister Rebecca and I would make ice cream that would last us through the summer if we were careful. It meant that we could use whatever we wanted and my ma’ used to say that it kept us out of trouble for a little bit. It was the only treat we ever had really.”

Steve smiled, “I’m from Brooklyn too. Imagine if we’d met when we were younger.”

Bucky smirked, “I bet you were trouble as a kid.”

Steve blushed, “You’d be right. I used to get into fights all the time. I hate bullies. The thing was, I was a skinny little thing and I was knocked down more often than not. The army changed that.”

Bucky understood, “Yeah, the army changes a lot of things.”

Steve stopped in front of an old apartment complex, “This is my stop.”

Bucky nodded, “Yeah, I’m further on. Tonight was fun.”

Steve agreed, “It was. About what Natasha said…”

Bucky’s stomach clenched unpleasantly and he braced himself for the worst, “Yeah?”

Steve stepped closer and a small smile was playing on his lips, “You don’t have to make ice cream to woo me.”

Steve leaned down and kissed Bucky who made an embarrassing squeaking sound. They both moved closer to deepen the kiss. They kissed for a long, drawn-out moment and then Bucky stepped away slowly. He drawled, “Well, that’s good to know, but for a kiss like that I might just make you your own ice cream anyway.”

Steve smiled, “Yeah? So long as it’s not apple pie I think that I can deal with it.”

Bucky chuckled and stole another kiss before he started walking away slowly, “Bye Captain. I’ll let you know about that ice cream.”

Steve grinned, “Yeah. See you tomorrow, Sergeant.”

**Author's Note:**

> All of the shops were made up by me and they’re all on the same street called Avenger Row, also made up by me for the purposes of this fic.


End file.
